Rachel and I are sitting in a booth at Mancini's vegan restaurant off Luker St. We never got to eat when we were at the mall, so I figured 'hey why not?' She's doing her best not to get upset and I'm doing my best to curb my urge to kill that motherfucker. How dare he? To refer to Rachel like that was just low! I don't care that he called me a dyke, it doesn't phase me anymore. My concern is Rachel, everytime she chokes back a sob I want to rip off his dick and force feed it to him through a straw.

"Are you ladies ready to order?" The waitress asks as she shuffles up close to our table. Rachel puts in her order and I just order a vegan vanilla shake.

"You're not eating?" Rachel asks with concern in her voice.

"No, not right now. My stomach's not up for it." At this her eyes are down trodden.

"I'm sorry you got in a fight because of me..." she says with hesitation. "I'm sure that wasn't how you wanted to spend your day."

"Meh, no worries. It was actually pretty awesome there at the end when I got to beat the crap out of Teenzilla... been meaning to do that for a while now," I say with a smirk. She chuckles with amusement but it's short-lived. "Listen... Rachel... I meant what I said earlier... that you don't deserve all of what you get... and that I'm sorry," I lick my bottom lip thinking of what else that needs to be said. "If I could redo that thing at the mall all over I'd do it the exact same way in a heart beat... I mean it Rachel, you don't deserve that and he didn't deserve you." She looks up at me slightly surprised by my confession. Her eyes are still shiny from the tears and her bottom lip is swollen from biting back all of her sobs, but she could look like an udder train wreck and I'd still think she's beautiful.

"Thanks... Santana." She says looking me in the eye and it sends a shiver down my spine straight to my core. Keep cool, Lopez, keep cool. Luckily the waitress chooses this moment to interrupt and deliver our order. We give our thanks and Rachel digs into her vegan ravioli while I take a tentative sip of my shake.

"Mmm..." I moan in appreciation. This shake ain't bad at all. "Not bad... for fake ice cream," I chuckle.

"See! I keep trying to tell everyone that not only is the vegan alternative lifestyle, healthier and anti-murderous of innocent animals but it's also delicious! You would be surprised at how many recipes there are; from everyday living to formal party meals to hors d'oeuvres to desserts and to many different cultures of food!" She says with a thousand watt smile. Ladies and gentlemen; she's back! I chuckle again at her rambling. "What's so funny?" Her smile gone with a slight frown replacing it.

"You are..." I say with a small grin.

"While I appreciate you being honest, I don't see the humor in one's health. It is very important to maintain a-" at this I cut her off.

"Rachel, it's not the subject matter that's funny; it's the zeal and enthusiasm you have behind it... It's kinda cute," I say as I give her another grin. She blushes and this time I do know what that blush is for.

"Thank you, Santana..."

We enjoy our meal (well her meal; my shake) in a comfortable silence before we pay and leave. We're sitting in my car and as I stop at a red light I look over in the passenger seat to find Rachel with a content grin on her face.

"So I guess you had fun today despite what happened huh?" I ask with a slight smirk.

"Yeah actually, I did," she says with that grin a little wider. I internally sigh, her smile will be the death of me. I just thought of something.

"Listen, I want you to know..." I start, looking over at her for a second. "This isn't a one time thing..." I finally say after a second of looking into her eyes.

"What?" She asks with surprise written on her face.

"Today wasn't a one time thing... I don't know, I kinda got the feeling that you were thinking about that..."

"I was... but I also don't want pity..." she says with a frown.

"It's not pity, it's more like a realization. I meant everything I said today and you deserve so much more than what you're given, but one thing I know you deserve more than anything is a friend... something I should've been a long time ago," I say with conviction. I'll never have her, but I will be there for her. She stares at me as I pull into my drive way so she can retrieve her Prius. "What?"

"Who are you?"

"Huh?"

"Who are you and what have you done with the real Santana Lopez?" She asks with a smirk. I chuckle at her attempt at lightening the mood and her subtle acceptance of my offer of friendship.

"I tied her up and locked her up in your closet," I retort. She's full blown laughing.

"Well damn, now she'll have to come out of the closet... again," she jokes. Now were both laughing. This is a side of her I've never seen... I like it. "Thank you again, Santana. Today was truly splendid." She gives me a thousand watt smile as she exits my car and gets into hers. She waves before she pulls out and drives away.

I stay in my car for just a while to calm down. That smile just always knocks me off my feet and shatters my thought process. She really is something special and if I have any say in it, I'll make sure no one messes with her, starting with the slushy problem... tomorrow.